Baker Sterchi Staff Members Sissy Russell and Ruth Kunkel-Haskins Selected as 2019 Unsung Legal Heroes

Baker Sterchi staff members Ruth (Sissy) Russell and Ruth Kunkel-Haskins have been selected as Missouri Lawyers Media 2019 Unsung Legal Hero Award honorees, an award honoring legal support professionals who have consistently gone above and beyond the call of duty in supporting attorney efforts.

This is the fourth year Missouri Lawyers Media has recognized behind the scene employees in several categories: Accounting, Firm Administration, Information Technology, Legal Marketing, Legal Secretary, Office Manager, and Paralegal. Russell was selected in the paralegal category and Kunkel-Haskins in the legal secretary category.

Russell has worked as a paralegal in Baker Sterchi’s Kansas City office for more than 20 years. One of the attorneys she works with commented, “Sissy cannot be ruffled; she is an oasis of stability. Words cannot express the appreciation we have for Sissy’s diligence, loyalty, and thoughtful input. She continues to be the glue that holds our team together, day after day, case after case, crisis after crisis.” 

Kunkel-Haskins is a legal secretary in the firm’s St. Louis office. In late-1970, and again in early 2000, she was among the “founding” staff of two newly established St. Louis area law firms. One of the attorneys Kunkel-Haskins works with stated, “Over the past 38 years, Ruth has not only provided exceptional administrative support, but has been extremely helpful in ensuring that our clients are well served. She has always been responsible, reliable and hard-working. I cannot conceive of having practiced law without her and her invaluable support. We really are a partnership.” 

Russell and Kunkel-Haskins join prior Baker Sterchi Unsung Legal Hero honorees Karen Griggs (2016) and Mary Hoffman (2018), both recognized in in the Firm Administrator category. Missouri Lawyers Weekly will recognize 2019 winners in an upcoming special section of the publication.